[...music...]: 2007-05

2007-05-15

nearly three months after its release in europe, patrick wolf's newest "the magic position" is released in north america today. it contains two extra live tracks.

i have resisted listening to it all this time. hearing it for the first time today, i was slightly disappointed that it is not as good as the previous "wind in the wires". the first half of "the magic position" is quite good, with the cheerful "accident & emergency" and the sad "bluebells". the second half is not as memorable. however, i did like the live piano version of "the child catcher"; it sounds more tragic than the original version.

still, it is a very good album. i will have to listen to it some more.

some internet sources say that patrick wolf will be taking a break from touring. he has three dates in toronto, but none in montreal. i guess i will not get the chance to see him live...

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, patrick wolf

tori amos

i have never been a big fan of tori amos, since i never took the time to listen to her material.

last week, i saw her new album "american doll posse", and quite liked the cover. i listened to some song samples. "bouncing off clouds" got me hooked.

so i got the deluxe edition today. comes with a dvd with an extra track.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, tori amos

2007-05-14

arcade fire @ aréna maurice richard

last night was the arcade fire show. it had quickly sold out, but thanks to rox, she got us tickets. she's written a complete rundown of the evening in her blog entry.

it was my first time attending a show in an arena-type venue. it wasn't too large, so we could still get good spots with a good view of the stage. it was my first time, watching a show while sitting at the balcony level, with a view of the sea of heads that make up the floor audience.

the opening act was st. vincent. it started as a solo act, with the singer and her electric guitar, some voice effects; it sounded almost industrial. then, when she started to play with her band, it sounded like a completely different act. i liked the last song "paris is burning". with the use of the stringed instruments and brass instruments, it sounded kind of carnivalesque. it was nice.

solo:

with band:

when the arcade fire were on, it was like a mini-orchestra on stage. a troupe of band members, rotating various instruments. there was something troubadour about the whole thing. interesting visual effects, with the screens at all four corners of the stage, displaying close-ups of the band members and other random film clips. also, giant glowsticks at the front of the stage, and an organ backdrop.

it's too bad i didn't know their songs enough to sing along. they played one of my favourites "no cars go" near the beginning. they also played "black wave/bad vibrations" that i like a lot from the new album. rox has a semi-complete setlist in her blog entry.

it was an enjoyable night. somewhat of a new experience for me, watching a show from such a view.

~~~

cd purchases:
- bell orchestre "recording a tape the colour of the light"
- st. vincent "ep"

hearing damage: a slight ringing. but it wasn't too bad.

~~~

Labels: arcade fire, arena maurice richard, cd purchase, shows, st. vincent

2007-05-04

ted leo & the pharmacists @ la sala rossa

i went to the show tonight with yeni, feeling very excited. i've mentioned several times in this blog, how much i love the man and his music, and so it is unnecessary to repeat how big of a fan i am.

vague angels were first. a band i had never heard of. i felt kind of bad for them, since they were playing to an almost empty venue. the music made me think of those scenes in the movies, where the protagonist drives an old car, alone on a long stretch of deserted road, with nothing but the sun and the sand, in order to escape some dark past. it was a mix of dark folkish pop-rock with a hint of country. the singer reminded me of conor oberst, but without the emo nor the angst. bonus points for an attempt at humour in the middle of the set, when the singer said something about bees and the end of mankind.

vague angels:

next were love of diagrams. kind of post-punk, straightforward indie rock. i liked the music; it was kind of catchy. but the vocals were atrocious, awful wailing, perhaps due to faulty equipment?

love of diagrams:

finally, ted leo and the pharmacists were on. great set, lots of energy. decent stage banter, making some jokes in between songs.

unfortunately, i was standing next to the guy exorcising his demons tonight; most of the time, i was trying to avoid being elbowed in the face. also, for some reason, i felt like such a dork in that crowd of cool cats. feeling so very self-conscious, i was not abe to let loose and dance, and enjoy the show as much i would have liked. small disappointments. bah. the hard-working ted leo will surely tour many times more; i will just catch one of his next shows in montreal.

most of the songs were from the new "living with the living":
- the sons of cain (a great way to open tonight's set)
- army bound (my second favourite of the album)
- colleen (not too memorable)
- a bottle of buckie (my favourite of the album)
- bomb.repeat.bomb. (such an angry song)
- annunciation day/born on christmas day (fun and short)
- the unwanted things (reggae-inspired, ugh)
- the lost brigade (with the long instrumental part that dragged on a bit)

from "shake the sheets":
- me and mia (always a hit)
- counting down the hours (my favourite of the album)
- little dawn (follows "counting down the hours" quite smoothly, like on the album)

from "hearts of oak":
- where have all the rude boys gone? (i found out about ted leo and the pharmacists through this song. it remains my favourite of all.)
- the high party (another favourite of this album)

from "the tyranny of distance"
- dial up (i think, unsure of this one)

after the set, ted leo barely left the stage before quickly returning for the encore, saying something like "thanks. there's no point in fucking around." it's so nice that he did not make the crowd wait. songs played during the encore:
- timorous me (my favourite, from "the tyranny of distance")
- walking to do (another fun song)
- ? (i don't recognise this one, maybe it's a cover?)

there were other songs too, but i have a weak memory.

blurry pictures:

~~~

cd purchase: none. i already have all the ted leo albums. the opening bands were good, but did not impress me.

hearing damage: it was the usual loudness, which means my ears will probably still ring until tomorrow morning.

~~~

edit: turns out the last song in the encore was "rappaport's testament: i never gave up", a chumbawamba cover.

~~~

Labels: la sala rossa, love of diagrams, shows, ted leo, vague angels

2007-05-03

travis

i was as hmv, and they were having a sale on some cd's and dvd's, $10 each, and buy 1 get 1 free. so it's basically like $5 each.

the cd section was mostly cheap best-of compilations of old bands and artists. not interesting.

among them was travis "the invisible band". although i probably won't be listening to it much, i ending up getting that cd, since it reminds me of high school, when i was in a britpop phase.

~~~

Labels: cd purchase, travis